


Here Be Dragons

by CookieDoughMe



Category: Haven (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Tumblr Prompt, dragons can be cute right?, haven ridiculousness, tiny dragon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-17
Updated: 2017-09-17
Packaged: 2018-12-30 20:01:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12116166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CookieDoughMe/pseuds/CookieDoughMe
Summary: This is non-specific as to timeline, but think Season Two era Duke and Nathan.Inspired bythis tumblr post





	Here Be Dragons

“Is- is that a dragon?!” asked Nathan.   
  
“Yup…” replied Duke, barely looking up from stacking glasses.   
  
“I left you alone for five minutes!”   
  
“Amazon’s express shipping option is very time efficient.”

“Funny. Where'd it come from? Whose Trouble is it?”

“ _I_ don't know Detective, that's your department isn't it? It's been very polite, keeping out of the way...”

“A polite dragon, great.”

“... not attacking anyone, no fire-breathing or anything. Look how small it is. And look how carefully it's perched on the edge of the bar so its claws don’t scratch the wood.”

“Oh well, if it respects the bar then it must be OK,” replied Nathan, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He really could do without this kind of thing today.

Duke stopped what he was doing and reached out a hand towards the creature, which it sniffed curiously. He reached behind him where a bowl of olives sat waiting to be cleared away, and held one out to the dragon.

It sniffed again, shuffled forwards a little cautiously, sniffed some more and then, apparently having decided it did not like olives, snorted in disgust. 

“Hmmm, what do dragons eat?” asked Duke.

“Not olives? I haven't got time for this. Ask Vince and Dave if they know of a Trouble that might… create a miniature dragon,” Nathan finished a little uncertainly.

Duke looked both put out and confused by this suggestion, but Nathan did not give him time to disagree. “I just need to know if you've seen Little Mike,” continued Nathan, eager to get back to the reason he'd come back in here in the first place.

“Not today. In fact he hasn't been in for a few days now.”

“Great.”

“Is that good? I can't tell what kind of ‘great’ that was.”

“Nevermind. Good luck feeding your dragon.”

“It's not  _ my _ dragon,” Duke protested, but Nathan was already halfway out the door.

-

Duke looked at the little creature, which was still staring at him with evident and expectant curiosity.

“There must be  _ something  _ in the kitchen you'll like, but  _ you can only come if you behave yourself _ .”

The dragon pulled its head back sharply in surprise, as though highly offended at the very suggestion of misbehaving.

“Fine then, come on. Do you fly?”

The dragon tilted its head at him as though considering its options, then half hopped, half flew, to land on his shoulder.

“OK, I guess that works,” said Duke, and walked carefully into the kitchen, thankful it was still early enough in the morning to be quiet.

“How about some strips of …”

“Morning boss,” said Joe as he arrived, then as he turned and took in the creature on Duke’s shoulder added an, “AHHHHOHMYGODWHATISTHAT?”

This made Duke jump and alarmed the dragon, resulting in a painful sounding screech and, for Duke, a painfully increased grip of its claws on his shoulder.

“It's a dragon Joe. Don't frighten it.”

“Don't frighten  _ it _ ?!”

“Look, if you're going to live in Haven, you have to accept that this is the kind of thing that's just going to happen from time to time; I did warn you. Go have a shot of whiskey if it'll help. Just one!” he added, shouting after Joe as he headed towards the bar, “You still need to cook!”

“OK,” he said more quietly to the dragon, calming down now that Joe had left without any more shouting, “I'm just going to move you here,” and he carefully picked the creature up and put it on the nearest shelf, then turned to examine the row of scratches its claws had left in his shoulder.

As he examined the wounds and got the first aid kit, he realised the dragon was watching him closely, its head on one side. As it saw him noticing, it let out a forlorn little whine as it looked back at his injured shoulder.

“It's OK,” said Duke. “Apology accepted. It'll be fine, see? I'm just going to put a bit of antiseptic on it … and a band-aid … there; good as new. Now - you stay there, I'm going to see what we've got that you might want to eat.”

The dragon watched and listened intently to all of this, and obeyed instructions to stay put while Duke went to the fridge. He brought back a few strips of raw beef on a plate. “How about this?” he asked, watching the interested sniffing from the dragon as it shifted along the shelf to get closer.

He picked up one of the little strips and held it out. The dragon leant forward, and the eager sniffs were replaced then by a single flame as an apparent prelude to a full beef - and finger - roasting bout of fire.

“Whoa!” cried Duke, pulling his hand back. “Not fire proof! Hang on.”

With the meat removed from his fingers and placed on a fork instead, Duke tried again. “OK,” he said, holding it right in front of the dragon, “do your thing; the fork is fireproof.”

The dragon - for reasons he couldn't really articulate, he was starting to think of it as a ‘she’ - cocked her head at him, pausing to consider this development. Duke moved the fork a little closer in an encouraging manner, and held it from one side, so that any burst of flame would not come straight at him. “It's OK,” he said.

The creature turned its attention back to the beef and a moment later a comparatively large flame engulfed it, toasting the little strip of meat to a crisp in no time. Then Duke held it forward and the dragon snatched it from the fork, gulping it down happily. 

“Well, that's answered the question of what you like to eat, anyway,” said Duke.

-

It was almost time for the evening rush when Nathan came back into the bar.

“Find Little Mike?” asked Duke. 

“hmmm? Oh, no. If you see him, let him know I want to talk to him?”

“Sure,” said Duke in a non-committal fashion, “I'm sure he'll be right down to the police station, first chance he gets.”

Nathan glared at him. “He's not wanted in connection with any crime.”

“Well I'm sure he'll find that very reassuring.”

“How's your dragon?” asked Nathan, just to change the subject. 

“She is not  _ my _ dragon.”

Nathan arched his eyebrows. “ _ She _ ? How did you establish that exactly?”

“We had a conversation.”

“A  _ talking _ dragon?”

“No. But she listens, and she definitely understands.”

Frowning, Nathan asked, “Is this the kind of understanding that your average pet dog might exhibit? Or the level of understanding that, say, a person turned into a mythical creature by an as-yet-unidentified Trouble might exhibit?”

Duke considered this, “That,” he said after a moment, “is a very good question. I don't know.”

“Where is she now?”

“Another excellent question. In the kitchen I think, come on.”

Reluctantly, Nathan followed Duke through the Gull. In one sense, this was none of his business, however he couldn't just ignore the possibility that this was a troubled person who needed help.

“Joe, where's Scratch?”

“Scratch?” asked Nathan.

For an answer Duke just pulled down his t-shirt to show Nathan the band-aids.

“Ah.”

“It wasn't her fault. It wasn't  _ anyone's  _ fault,” clarified Duke. “It's fine.”

“She's just here,” said Joe, throwing her a scrap of lamb from what he was preparing. She roasted it with a quick flash of flame in mid air and gulped it down happily.

“Now you're just showing off,” Duke complained, but he sounded impressed.

“OK, that was a good trick. But does it mean she's self aware? Is there a person in there?”

Scratch titled her head quizzically at Nathan. “This is Nathan,” said Duke. “His job is to help people. Or dragons. If they need helping,” he added, directing this last towards Nathan.

“Do you need helping?” Nathan asked Scratch. 

Scratched looked briefly back at the lamb being prepared, as if to check she wasn't missing any scraps that might be on offer, then turned back to Nathan and snorted at him, just as if he were an olive.

“I don't think she thinks much of that idea,” offered Duke.

“Hmmm. I'm going to ask Audrey to swing by later, just in case.”

“Just in case what?”

“She sees something different. With her immunity.”

“Well if you like, but I think they'll get on famously.”

-

It was late when Audrey finally called in on her way home. 

“Nathan tells me I've to ask you about your new acquisition, but you're not to say anything, just show me.”

Duke considered protesting, but in the end he just pointed.

“Is that a dragon?”

“Does it look like a dragon?”

“Yes.”

“Then we can only assume it's a dragon. Nathan wanted to check you didn't see anything different,  with your immunity to the Troubles and all.”

“It looks like a red and blue dragon about the size of a small cat.”

“Yes, that's what it looks like to me too. We're calling her Scratch.”

“Scratch?”

Duke pulled down his t-shirt. “It was an accident. She s really very well behaved.”

“Whose Trouble is it?”

“Well  _ I  _ don't know, do I? She just turned up this morning. Once we worked out what she likes to eat, she's been quite happy. This is Audrey,” he told Scratch. “She works with Nathan.”

Scratch snorted at the name.

“She's not too sure about Nathan,” Duke confided to Audrey. “Audrey is nicer,” he told Scratch, enduring a frown from Audrey in response.

“Where's she going to sleep?” asked Audrey. 

“hmmm, Where do you want to sleep Scratch? You can stay here, or come with me to the Rouge.”

At this last, she hopped over to his (uninjured) shoulder and perched herself there.

“A dragon on a boat,” Audrey said, “Now I've heard everything.

-

Over the next few weeks, Duke and Scratch got into a routine. She spent the nights in the galley on the Rouge, the days in the kitchen or the bar of the Gull. It didn't take long for the regular customers to get used to her and soon it was common knowledge that (as long as you didn't threaten Duke or any of the other staff, or try to take any food away from her) she was no threat to anyone.

No other mythical creatures turned up around town, no one was reported missing and Scratch seemed quite happy to spend her time in the Gull. So as long as Duke was happy to feed her, which he was, even Nathan had to admit there did not seem to be any problem they could realistically fix. 

He tried again asking her if she needed any help, if she was happy hanging out in the Gull. Her snorted indignation, and hop away from Nathan to her favourite spot on Duke’s shoulder, seemed to make her feelings clear.

The rest of the town took a little longer to adjust to having a dragon among the population; the first time she went with him to the farmers’ market, there was some consternation. Then they bumped into the Rev. who asked, “What kind of ungodly creature is this?”

Scratch snorted and hissed at him, letting out a little touch of flame to show him what she could do.

“This is a creature named Scratch,” said Duke, “and she doesn't like you.”

The Rev. just glared, unwilling or unable to respond to a creature he didn't think should exist.

Duke took great delight in telling Nathan about this incident the next time he came into the Gull, and Nathan's obvious approval of her reaction meant that Scratch warmed to him somewhat.

“You should have seen his face, Nate, honestly; it was priceless.”

Nathan smiled, “Like t'see him lost for words.”

Scratch followed this conversation closely, until, distracted, she hopped down from her favourite perch on Duke’s shoulder, a few flaps of her wings taking her just a little further to a stool where she had a better view of a couple and their dog that had just come into the bar.

“She's very interested in people's pets,” offered Duke as an explanation.

“Does she fly?” Nathan asked, “Or just … hop-fly?”

Scratch turned around briefly at that, but turned her attention back to the dog making its way across the room.

“I haven't seen her fly properly. I'm not sure if there might be something wrong with her wing. When she stretches, she stretches one out further than the other.”

Scratch obliged just then with a demonstration, her left wing not straightening as far as the left. 

“Yeah like that,” said Duke.

“hmmm. Want me to see if John down at the vets will take a look? Not that he has any experience with dragons, but he owes me a favour. He might be able to do something.”

Scratch hopped back onto the bar then, repeating the demonstration of her broken wing as she looked at Nathan.

“I think she likes the idea of that kind of help,” said Duke. “Thanks.”

-

As it turned out, what John did have experience of was bats, and it seemed that Scratch’s wing was kind of similar. When Duke took her down there, she was fascinated by all of the other patients, who glared at her warily until she went inside. John, having been warned as to the nature of his next patient, was still wary himself and him and Scratch stared at each other for a moment.

“Scratch, this is John. He’s going to see if he can fix your wing, if you like?”

And so Scratch hopped from Duke’s shoulder to the examination table, and held out her wings so John could see the damaged one.

“The bone’s been broken and reset badly,” John concluded. “I can probably correct it, but it will mean re-breaking the bone, and it still might not set perfectly. There will be a long recovery time.”

Duke nodded and looked at Scratch, who tilted her head at him. “He can help, but it will hurt,” Duke said. “And even then you might still not be able to fly the same as if you’d never been hurt.”

Scratch looked back at John again.

“If you want to go ahead, make an appointment with Jill on reception for next week.”

“OK, thanks doc,” said Duke.

Out in reception, Duke walked up to the desk, “Scratch this is Jill. She can make an appointment for us if you like.”

Scratch hopped down onto the desk and towards Jill, looking curiously at the papers and screen in front of her. And so Duke made an appointment for next week.

-

After the surgery, Scratch took a long time to come round from the anaesthetic (the same kind they used on reptiles) and when she did she looked up at Duke and whined at him. “It’s OK, don’t try to move your wings; let’s take you home and find you some nice beef to roast, eh?”

And so, Scratch didn’t move around much for a while. Duke built her a snug little bed, so that he could take her from the Rouge to the Gull more easily, and she spent most of her time in there. The regulars at the Gull stayed away so as not to alarm or her knock her healing wing, and the staff fed her often with scraps of meat they cooked so she didn’t have to.

“How’s Scratch doing?” Nathan asked one day.

“OK I think. I’m taking her for a check up tomorrow. John said it would be a while before she would be moving around again. I think she’s just bored more than anything to be honest.”

The next time Nathan came into the Gull, he had a little parcel for her. “What’s this?” asked Duke. 

“I had to go into Bangor this morning. Saw a new shop; The Exotic Meats Company. Thought Scratch might be interested. There’s some ostrich meat, kangaroo and water buffalo too.”

“Wow Nate, thanks,” said Duke.

\- 

Scratch’s wing never quite healed right, but once she had recovered she could stretch it out further than before and she could fly further now too; just far enough to comfortably make it from the Gull to the Rouge in fact, and so that was what she did most days. But from there she could reach the police station too, and so some days she was to be found in Nathan’s office, perched on the arm of the sofa or the side of the desk (very carefully, so as not to scratch the wood), closely following the events of the day and sympathising with Nathan when things didn’t go to plan.

She even helped out on a case one time, breathing fire to deter a crowd of vampires that appeared out of the TV, and helping to control the situation long enough for Audrey to talk the Troubled person down.

But she spent most of her time in the Gull, where she became closely acquainted with all of the regulars. Everyone got a welcome when they arrived, Joe and the other staff in particular. But (aside from Duke of course) she reserved her most enthusiastic welcome for Nathan. And every time he went to Bangor, he stopped by the same shop to pick up a different kind of meat for her.

**Author's Note:**

> Notes: I don’t know how readily such things are available in Bangor, but a real shop in London made me think of the ostrich meat: <http://boroughmarket.org.uk/traders/the-exotic-meat-company>.


End file.
